Hearing Xiao Ling’s angry shout, Ji Yuan answered in a serious manner.

“Just a dozen days ago, no more, no less: five hundred taels of gold.”

After he spoke, Ji Yuan took two steps closer, pulled out a stool, and sat down, then glanced under the table out of the corner of his eyes.

The Dragon Son and Dragon Daughter glanced at each other, then also walked to the side of the table and sat down. The former even sniffed the fragrance of the dishes on the table.

Xiao Ling ignored the two people next to him and just stared with narrowed eyes at Ji Yuan. As long as one wasn’t an idiot, it was clear just who was his priority. Although his actions had not been done in entire secrecy, it was still strange to be able to accurately find him at this time and place.

At this time, he finally saw the person in front of him clearly in the candlelight, especially the other party’s pair of pale eyes.

“Hmph, hah, ridiculous. Shopkeeper! Shopkeeper!”

Xiao Ling called out a few times but did not hear footsteps approaching, and immediately realized in his heart: could it be that the other party had ambushed his expert outside?

“Who are you? I can’t remember who I might have offended.”

Xiao Ling subconsciously looked at the beautiful woman beside him. The other party just called out her original surname, so perhaps he already knew who the person next to him was.

By normal logic, the other party would likely have checked the details people around him while investigating Xiao Ling’s background.

“Five hundred taels of gold is no small amount. Why don’t I remember owing this debt?”

“Of course you don’t remember, because you were not there when the debt was established.”

Ji Yuan said in a somewhat playful tone, and continued talking before Xiao Ling’s anger burst.

“It was on the large performance boat on the banks of the Shushui River in Chengsu Prefecture, You Province. I ransomed a person who looks just like Miss Duan next to you.”

As soon as these words came out, Xiao Ling suddenly stood up.

“Impossible! Over there…”

Xiao Ling stopped halfway through his words, and his expression changed several times. Duan Muwan next to him was also shocked.

Ji Yuan was in no hurry, so he waited for the other party to continue.

But Ying Feng saw that Xiao Ling didn’t continue to speak. After glancing at Ji Yuan, he couldn’t help but speak again.

“Looking at your official aura, you must be the son of an official, so you must have some means. But it is not possible for you to quietly switch the Red Beauty on the Daxiu Ship. Do you understand what I mean?”

“Haha, I do not understand!”

Xiao Ling sneered began to play dumb. His hand under the table withdrew the silver, but instead quietly took out a roll of yellow talisman paper from the hidden pocket inside his sleeve.

“By the way, sir, you said I owe you 500 taels of gold. I will pay it back now. I just happen to have a silver banknote of this full amount.”

After Xiao Ling spoke, his hands exploded with true Qi, and he suddenly flipped the Eight Immortals Table and tore open the yellow talisman in his hand.

“Answer me, Great God of Qing Prefecture!”

Swoosh-

Dazzling streams of red light burst out from Xiao Ling’s hands, as if snakes of red light were slithering away.

Xiao Ling’s next move was to hug Duan Muwan, who was beside him, and whisper “let’s go,” using his inner energy and great strength to slam sideways into the window.

“Bang!”

With this sound, Xiao Ling, who was still holding Duan Muwan, was bounced back by the wooden wall as if he had a sheet of iron. His head was dizzy.

He had expected that after he had broken through the wooden wall, he would escape with the beauty in his arms, which naturally did not happen.

“Go? Where are you going?”

Xiao Ling shook his dizzy head. His body seemed a little stiff. He turned around little by little. Even though he was mentally prepared, he couldn’t help but be shocked upon seeing situation behind him.

The Eight Immortals Table and the platters of wine and food that he had overturned were all suspended in the air. The wine had not been spilled, the dishes had not fallen, and the cups and plates were unbroken. The woman waved her arm and the wine, dishes, cups, and table returned to their original places, and everything was restored.

Ying Feng held the yellow talisman in his hand, which he had taken from Xiao Ling’s grasp.

There are a lot of messy lines drawn on it like a ghost’s painting. The only special thing were the words “Qing Prefecture” written on it. Some obscure supernatural light flowed in it. He played with it for a while then handed it to Ji Yuan, who had not touched it at all, with both hands.

“Uncle Ji, please take a look.”

Ji Yuan took it and looked it over. It was a mess of red lines, and he couldn’t make sense of it. But the words on it were somewhat similar to an Edict, despite being very different.

Although he couldn’t understand the talisman, he could still deduce a part of its effect through some of the talisman’s movements just now. The situation just now was enough to show that Xiao Ling and his companion were not innocent mortals who knew nothing.

Looking at the panicked opponent, Ji Yuan unfolded the talisman paper and asked in a low voice.

“Do you know that if three ordinary people were here, they would have been pierced through the heart by ten thousand snakes just now…”

Ji Yuan frowned, looked up at the panicked two people. Although he seemed calm, his voice was like crashing waves and thunder.

“Evil techniques are bloodthirsty, and use blood to nourish the talisman. This alone is enough to make the underworld drag your souls to their prison for re-education. Who gave you such a vicious talisman?”

Ji Yuan’s rebuke was filled with a soul-shaking momentum, making Xiao Ling and Duan Muwan feel like children who heard thunder rumbling in the night rain for the first time. Their hearts were trembled and their bodies went numb.

It took long time before Xiao Ling and Duan Muwan could react. After all, Duan Muwan didn’t have Xiao Ling’s psychological steadiness. She was terrified, and cried as she defended herself.

“This is… it’s a gift from the gods, it’s not some evil technique… We just want to be together… it’s thanks to the gods that we could be here, wuwuwuwu…”

“What gods? Which gods? The Great God of Qing Prefecture that you just called on? Speak clearly!”

Ying Feng couldn’t stand the woman’s cries.

Xiao Ling patted the frightened Duan Muwan. His face was gloomy and uncertain. He didn’t know whether the three people in the room were demons or ghosts — in short, the situation was stronger than what a mortal could deal with. He hoped the identity of the god who he had brought up could calm the other party.

“If you really want to settle accounts, go find the River Goddess of the Tongtian River!”¹

“Huh?”

Ying Ruoli was puzzled.

Xiao Ling looked at her, took a breath, and continued.

“That’s right, it was the Lady Ying of the Tongtian River who helped us. Two years ago, she saw that Wan’er and I were in love but couldn’t be together. She was deeply moved and showed up to help us. She also gave us this talisman for self-defense…”

“You– What did you say!?”

Ying Ruoli couldn’t bear it anymore, and asked in a voice full of shock and anger. Her high voice startled everyone, including Ji Yuan.

She stared at the two for a while, then suddenly sneered.

“Hahaha…”

“I guess that the River Goddess must have told you that this talisman must be fed blood from time to time. Spiritual blood is the best, followed by human blood, and finally animal blood?”

“You…”

“How do I know? Hmph, by teaching people to use evil methods to feed the talisman, in the next ten years, or even decades, you will rely more and more on this talisman, because it can harm others without any price. But the appetite of the talisman will grow. If animal blood can’t feed it, it will be human blood. If there are not enough people, it will kill more…”

Ji Yuan had no idea that this talisman was so evil. He couldn’t help but break into a cold sweat hearing Ying Ruoli’s words. Her eyes had changed a little when she looked at Xiao Ling again, but now it was obviously the anger of the real River Goddess.

Both Ji Yuan and the Dragon Children could see that Xiao Ling was not lying. That’s why Ying Ruoli was even more furious.

“You said that person claimed to be the Goddess of the Tongtian River? But she gave you such an evil thing, and you believed her?”

Ying Ruoli’s imposing aura was now threatening, her divine power is flowing faintly. The two mortals were so terrified that Xiao Ling’s lips and tongues trembled as he circulated his Qi.

“This, this… At that time, the god came over the waves, and showed so many supernatural techniques. I was just a mortal. If not, how could I think to use it…”

“So you believed it? Even if she gave you such an evil talisman?”

Xiao Ling fell silent, and his eyes flickered a little. Ying Ruoli sneered repeatedly.

“It seems that you still had doubts in your heart, but you gladly accepted it. I guess she had a condition for her help, and this condition was to raise this talisman, right?”

Ying Feng looked at his little sister, who rarely grew angry, and walked over to Ji Yuan and whispered.

“Uncle Ji, Ruoli has never been so furious… She is more advanced than me in cultivation… If she loses control, we can only rely on you, Uncle Ji…”

Ji Yuan turned to look at him and then at the Dragon Daughter with a subtle expression on his face.

Ying Ruoli obviously heard what her brother said in front of Ji Yuan. She suddenly turned her head and glared at him fiercely, then smiled awkwardly at Ji Yuan.

After that, the Dragon Daughter finally eased her emotions and faced Xiao Ling and Duan Muwan again, her eyes flashing.

“That evil creature said that she was the Goddess of the Tongtian River, so guess who who I am?”

After the Dragon Daughter finished speaking, she lifted both her arms, and all the disguise changes on her body disappeared. Her face became more and more beautiful, and her clothes also showed a stream of flowing light.

In a matter of seconds, the woman who had been there just now had turned into the dignified and majestic clothes of the River Goddess, with a golden ribbon fluttering between her shoulders and sleeves like a wave.

“If you can’t guess, I can give you a hint: my name is Ying Ruoli!”

T/n: it was at that point he knew: he f***ed up.

1. T/n: ooooh buddy.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read